I'm a newbie at breeding labradors. So new in fact I have purchased a fox red male through a reputable breeder in a different state, and he won't be born until November. I've been looking at females, I'd love to go through the same breeder, but his lines are close enough I worry about that, so Ive looked elsewhere. Ive seen some breeders posting their dogs have genetic clearances through their parentage rather than testing their dogs. I'm not a genetics expert, but I worry this is a faulty practice, and thus would not guarantee a pup's health. What say you?
Hi Cagwood... welcome to the forum. Hmmm... The thing is: To be a reputable breeder - a GOOD breeder - which I'm assuming you want to be (no one sets out to be a 'bad' breeder) - you need to know the breed. In all ways. You need some experience owning, training, competing with, assessing the breed... If you had that, you would already know about genetic clearances and 'Clear by parentage' - you would know it because you had been about the breed a whiles. Getting two dogs for the purposes of breeding without knowing even the first thing about genetic clearances, is just - frankly - foolhardy. Because it suggests there are many other things you also don't know - about the breed, about breeding and about owning two intact dogs of the same sex. In fact, choosing to own your own male dog in itself reveals a lack of understanding in a first-time breeder. And then - if you get both dogs at the same age, you are going to run into littermate syndrome and find that they bond much more closely with each other than with you. In short: Phew, there is so much to tell you, that it's impossible to do it in one post to ensure you get things right. I would suggest that you switch your choice of dog from this litter you have a pup picked from, to a bitch instead of a dog pup. If they are not yet born, that shouldn't be a problem. Have just the bitch, raise her with all the focus and attention and 1-2-1 care which a puppy deserves, train and bond with her and get her health clearances done. When she is 2yo, if you feel she has no terrible faults, then look around for a stud to use. Choose a stud already with health clearances, who has field qualifications or quals of some other kind - because the stud's qualifications are what are going to help you to sell the puppies and set you apart from Joe Bloggs up the road, who bred his own two dogs together - no choosing involved. If you want, keep a female pup from that litter and now you've got your two dogs and can keep your lines going.... Owning both stud and bitch is really not a good idea: The bitch is going to come into season every 6 months. How are you going to separate them and prevent unwanted matings before they are old enough? He is going to howl, urinate everywhere, refuse food and more... putting him in a crate isn't going to be enough - many a determined dog has bust out of a crate. How do you know that the two dogs you have chosen will be well-suited? What if both of them have the same fault or issue, how can you improve on that by breeding them together? You need to have a choice of studs for your bitch, so you can choose a stud well suited to her - not determine what dogs you will breed before they themselves are even born!! What if one dog fails their health clearances? With 2 dogs and a heck of a lot of tests to run, it's likely one may. You now have two dogs, of opposite sexes and all the difficulties that brings - and you can't breed them. Are you going to purchase yet ANOTHER dog? Will you use an outside stud (if it's the stud which has failed his?) - if so, why not just use an outside stud from the start and own only a bitch?? What if both dogs are Carriers for a genetic condition? You can't breed 2 Carriers together without creating Affected puppies. They each might be fine, bred to another dog - but you can't breed those 2 specific dogs together. What will you do then? Have you researched littermate syndrome and the risks of that? Have you informed the breeders you are buying from, that you intend to use the pup for breeding purposes? Have you checked if the pedigree has any breeding restrictions on it, placed there by the breeder, which will prevent you registering any puppies? And so on, I could probably list 5 more pages... In short, this is a really terrible idea. Please don't do it. The world has enough backyard breeders already and you would just be becoming yet another of the worst kind of breeder around. Get a bitch only, prove her in some way and raise her well and get her health clearances. Then find a qualified stud with health clearances who suits your bitch, if you still want to breed. In the meantime, learn all you can about breeding because it is extremely challenging... especially when done well. Littermate syndrome: http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/is...ems-Adopting-Two-Puppies-At-Once_16190-1.html http://blog.betternaturedogtraining.com/2013/07/18/littermate-syndrome/ To answer your original question: It is fine if a puppy is 'clear by parentage'. It means both parents have been tested clear for the condition and it is impossible for the puppy to inherit it and therefore the pup does not need to be tested for it. This is something you should know if you are just an experienced/good pet dog owner, if you're a breeder, it is really not a good reflection of knowledge to be asking something so basic....
PS - Just to add: I just read your other post - so you already own the bitch and you are considering buying a dog? That's not what you post here sounds like, maybe I got it wrong... if so SOME of the stuff above won't apply - but a lot of it still will.... I'd not do it - instead you have the world of stud dogs available to you to choose from, and one of the great things is being able to choose one - not just have to use the one you own.... PLUS you will also have more to advertise the puppies on if the sire has qualifications of some kind... A stud dog's job is done in about 5 minutes(!!) (if she's lucky!!) - so owning a dog from 8 weeks to 2 years, just to get your 5 minutes, is a huge investment - besides the risk of him not passing tests etc as mentioned above...
If a disease required two copies of a mutated gene for the puppies to be affected, and both parents have tested with two normal genes, then no puppy will be affected and no puppy will be a carrier. That litter is "cleared by parentage" and there is no need to test any puppy in the litter. No puppy is "cleared by parentage" for Hips and Elbows although the family history on those scores is something that should be considered. Most responsible Breeders selling a full registration puppy (meaning they are granting the right to breed the puppy) require that the buyer insist that the new owner be mentored by them or another breeder through the first breeding. There are usually additional terms in the sales and purchase agreement that must be met or the Breeder has the right to take possession of the dog in the event of a breach. This sounds horrible to some, but it is meant to protect the breed itself by making sure that the new breeder is knowledgable about genetic testing, hip and elbow scoring, making sure that the owner knows the proper care of a breeding and lactating bitch and the best ways to raise a litter for the long term physical and mental health of the puppies and so on. There should also be mentoring on how to read a pedigree to determine the best mating for bringing forth a litter of puppies that conform to the breed standard and for which the odds of longevity are improved to the best of the breeder's ability. There is in-breeding, line-breeding, and outcross breeding. In short, there is a lot to learn.
Thank you for your advice. I have actually been researching all clearences, and have a two year old bitch we've been training and has been a part of our home since she was a pup. She's in the process of getting her OFA hip/elbow certifications and other genetic clearences. We had not planned on getting another puppy straight away. Simply like keeping my eyes open, and seeing what's out there for future reference, as well as keeping myself informed. I had read something about hidden genetics issues coming to the fore if lines were bread too closely, so I simply wanted another's opinion. As far as being "another backyard breeder," I understand your concern. That being said, a person seeking advice and information from those who are experienced would not fit your description of that type of breeder, therefore I would not fit that description and shouldn't be treated as such. Am I mistaken in the notion everyone must start somewhere? I believe I've read countless "about me's" on breeder websites with stories very much like mine, and yet they don't wish to give others a chance??? It seems to me the expert breeder population should be far friendlier with those who have a desire to do it right, and out of the love for the breed. As for the male puppy, I've already spoken to the breeder over the phone, and I told him my plans. He was in agreement with giving me full registration because he knew and understood my love for my dog and others like her. I am sorry if my original question made you or others feel I wanted nothing more than to breed some dogs for whatever purposes you must have felt were nefarious. I simply wanted to know if what I had read was correct, or if I misunderstood it. Again, thank you for all the information. Have a lovely day.
My question had been purely curiosity, and possibly for future use. I want to show my new boy, and we are already looking for a reputable stud for our girl...there's not a lot where I'm from unless I want to introduce dilute genes, and from what I've read I am not interested in that. Thank you again.
